Clacton by-election: Douglas Carswell becomes Ukip's first ever elected MP after a sensational victory | The Independent UK Politics Clacton by-election: Douglas Carswell becomes Ukip's first ever elected MP after a sensational victory Mr Carswell switched parties and resigned his seat to give voters in his constituency the chance to back him or sack him - they chose to do the former Friday 10 October 2014 01:45 BST Click to follow Indy Politics Douglas Carswell (left) and Ukip leader Nigel Farage celebrate their win in Clacton AFP/Getty Images The UK Independence Party scored a sensational victory early this morning when Douglas Carswell became the first MP ever elected under the party’s colours. He romped home in a by-election in Clacton, in Essex, with 21,113 votes, trouncing his Tory opponent, Giles Watling, who scored 8,709. Labour came third with 3,959, while the Liberal Democrats trailed with a humiliating 483.

In his acceptance speech, Mr Carswell said that if Ukip remained true to its principles, “there is nothing that we cannot achieve, in Essex, East Anglia, in England, and in the whole country beyond – and, yes, next in Rochester.” Nigel Farage hailed the vote "the best night in UKIP's history" as he warned the Tories and Labour: "We're after you - you have underestimated us", Sky News reported. The Ukip leader added: "What it shows is that UKIP is now a truly national party. We will now take the people's army of UKIP to the Rochester and Strood, and we will give that absolutely everything we have got." In Rochester, the Tories face another potentially disastrous by-election after its MP Mark Reckless became the second Tory to defect to Ukip. The Clacton result was a personal triumph for the former Tory MP who put his future on the line in August when he announced that he was switching parties and resigned his seat to give voters in his Clacton constituency the chance to back him or sack him.

In pictures: The rise of Ukip In pictures: The rise of Ukip 1/8 1993: Alan Sked forms Ukip History professor Alan Sked had been active in anti-EU politics for a while beore he founded Ukip in 1993. He resigned from the party after the 1997 election, concerned that it was attracting far-right members, and has been critical of Ukip since. Picture: Reuters Reuters 2/8 2005: Kilroy defects Former TV presenter Robert Kilroy-Silk founded Veritas in 2005, after a failed bid to become leader, and took many of Ukip's elected members with him. But the party slowly lost its popularity and didn't put forward any candidates in the last election. Picture: REUTERS/Kieran Doherty REUTERS KD/RUS 3/8 2010: Farage becomes leader, again Farage had led Ukip from 2006 until 2009, when he stood down to fight against the Speaker, John Bercow, for his Buckingham seat. He failed to win the election and returned to lead the party in November 2010.

Picture: REUTERS/Kieran Doherty REUTERS/Kieran Doherty 4/8 2010: Ukip fights for election Nigel Farage was injured in a plane crash on polling day in the 2010 general election, but his party increased its success in the votes. It fielded 572 candidates and took 3.1% of the vote, though failed to win any seats. REUTERS/Darren Staples REUTERS/Darren Staples 5/8 2013: Eastleigh gains Ukip's candidate Diane James got the highest ever number of votes for any candidate from the party, but was beaten by the Liberal Democrats. The surge in support gave Ukip confidence ahead of local and European elections later in the year. Picture: Reuters 6/8 2013: Bloom kicked out Godfrey Bloom, who served as an Ukip MEP from 2004 to 2014, had the whip withdrawn in 2013 after sexist comments and an attack on a journalist. He sat as an independent MEP until 2014, when he ended his term in office.

Picture: REUTERS/Luke MacGregor 7/8 2014: European election success Ukip got a higher proportion of the vote than any other party in 2014's European elections, adding 11 new MEPs and taking its total to 24. REUTERS/Luke MacGregor 8/8 2014: Carswell defects Douglas Carswell defected from Ukip at the end of August, and was followed by Mark Reckless at the end of September, who resigned from the Tories amid rumours of many more defections to come. Picture: REUTERS/Toby Melville Turn-out was 51.2 per cent - unusually high for a parliamentary by-election – a tribute partly to the huge effort that volunteers put into plastering Clacton and its surrounding villages with purple coloured Ukip posters. Read more PROFILE: A PROLIFIC BLOGGER WHO MAKES HIS OWN JAM Nigel Farage was also cheered by an extraordinary near miss in the previously safe Labour seat of Heywood and Middleton , where Labour’s candidate, Liz McGinnis, hung on by just 617 votes, after a recount.

She received 11,633 votes, 40.9 per cent of the total, to Ukip’s 11,016, or 38.7 per cent. For Labour that result was far too close to comfort, in a seat they held with a majority of 5,971 in 2010. The result, on a low turn out of just 38 per cent, amounted to an 18 per cent swing from Labour to Ukip, who were a poor fourth in 2010. The by election was caused by the death of the Labour MP Jim Dobbie. Labour’s Michael Dugher was quick to point out that Labour had increased its share of the vote, and the narrowness of the result came from the collapse in Conservative and Lib Dem support – but the increase was less than one per cent and cold comfort on a night when Labour was vividly reminded that Ukip is now corroding the vote in its northern strongholds.

Nigel Farage took to twitter to publicise his new slogan aimed at winning over those who normally vote Tory in the north – “vote Tory, get Labour.” By taking 38.7 per cent of the vote in Heywood and Middleton, Ukip achieved what was up to that moment their best result ever in a parliamentary by-election - though that record lasted for just an hour while the Clacton count was completed. Losing Clacton is a blow for the Conservatives, who saw their share of the vote fall to around a fifth of the total, down from 53 per cent of votes cast when Carswell was their candidate in 2010. The early indication was that the Liberal Democrats had lost their deposit. During the day, the Conservatives tried to gain political advantage from the fact that Mr Carswell was unable to vote, despite posing for photographers outside a polling booth, because he lives outside the constituency boundary. The Tory candidate, Giles Watling is a local councillor. The Tories will put up a desperate fight to hold onto Rochester and Strood, against Mark Reckless.

Privately, Conservative party managers had accepted that Clacton was lost, but are hoping they can halt Ukip’s relentless rise by holding on to Rochester. Two Ukip by-elections victories in quick succession would seriously interfere with the message the Tory want to send their natural supporters at next year’s general election – that supporting Ukip is a wasted vote because their candidates have no hope of being elected and defecting to them only helps Labour. In Clacton, Ukip benefited from a general disillusionment with the main political parties, made worse by high unemployment. A report last year by the Centre for Social Justice said that 54 per cent of 16- to 64-year-olds in one of Clacton’s electoral wards were without jobs and reliant on benefits.

Ukip Defector Douglas Carswell Wins Clacton By-Election, Becomes Party's First MP | The Huffington Post Ukip Defector Douglas Carswell Wins Clacton By-Election, Becomes Party's First MP 10/10/2014 02:48 | Updated 10 October 2014 510 PA/Huffington Post UK PA Ukip has its first elected MP after Douglas Carswell won the Clacton by-election today. Mr Carswell received 21,113 votes to secure the seat with a majority of 12,404, as he finished comfortably ahead of Conservative candidate Giles Watling. The by-election in Clacton took place after Mr Carswell defected to Ukip from the Conservatives and resigned from his seat in August. SEE ALSO: Labour Holds Off Ukip Surge To Win In Heywood Turnout was 51.2% with 35,386 ballot papers counted, a decrease from the 64.2% turnout out at the 2010 general election.

Tory Mr Watling received 8,709 votes to finish second while Labour's Tim Young finished third with 3,957 votes. Ukip defector Mark Reckless, who has also triggered a by-election in Rochester and Strood, attended the count in Clacton's Princes Theatre. Former Liberal Democrat MP Lembit Opik also made an appearance in support of independent candidate Charlotte Rose, who was campaigning for sexual freedom and finished in last place with 56 votes. Mr Carswell previously secured the Clacton seat in 2010 with a majority of 12,068 votes over Labour's Ivan Henderson, having first being elected to Parliament in 2005 in the Harwich seat. In his acceptance speech Mr Carswell explained his decision to stand down after defecting from the Tories. "I resigned from Parliament to face this election because I answer first, foremost and last to you, you are my boss, I will not let you down," he said. Carswell speaks after securing Ukip's historic win "To my new party I offer these thoughts: humility when we win, modesty when we are proved right.

If we speak with passion, let it always be tempered by compassion. We must be a party for all Britain and all Britons: first and second generation as much as every other. Our strength must lie in our breadth. "If we stay true to that there is nothing that we cannot achieve. Nothing we cannot achieve in Essex and East Anglia, in England and the whole country beyond." Ukip's next target is Rochester and Strood, where Mr Carswell's fellow defector Mark Reckless is hoping to return to Parliament. Mr Carswell said: "In Rochester as in Clacton I believe voters will reject negative campaigns by old party machines." Mr Watling said he wanted to stand as the Tory candidate at next year's general election. He said: "I intend to stand here next May at the general election when this country will face a clear choice of who they want to be the leader - David Cameron or Ed Miliband." Labour's Mr Young said: "I would also like to thank Mr Carswell, who of course none of this would have been possible. I wish him well.

Having been born in Clacton and brought up here I truly care about Clacton and we will always continue to hold you to account Douglas, but I congratulate you on your victory." Howling Laud Hope, of the Official Monster Raving Looney Party, joked: "One little message for Mr Carswell, come seven months' time in May will you cross the floor and join the loonies?" Earlier, Labour held the Heywood and Middleton seat by just 617 votes as Farage claimed Ukip was "ripping lumps" out of the party in its northern heartlands.

The Result: Douglas Carswell (UKIP) 21,113 (59.75%) Giles Watling (C) 8,709 (24.64%, -28.38%) Tim Young (Lab) 3,957 (11.20%, -13.84%) Chris Southall (Green) 688 (1.95%, +0.71%) Andy Graham (LD) 483 (1.37%, -11.57%) Bruce Sizer (Ind) 205 (0.58%) Howling Laud Hope (Loony) 127 (0.36%) Charlotte Rose (Ind) 56 (0.16%) Related on HuffPost: UKIP gains first elected MP with Clacton win - BBC News BBC News UKIP gains first elected MP with Clacton win 10 October 2014 From the section UK Politics comments Read more about sharing.

Close share panel Media captionFormer Tory MP Douglas Carswell becomes the first UKIP candidate to be elected to the House of Commons The UK Independence Party has gained its first elected MP, with Douglas Carswell taking the seat of Clacton by 12,404 votes. Mr Carswell, who defected from the Conservatives, knocked his old party - which enjoyed a 12,068 majority at the 2010 election - into second place. UKIP leader Nigel Farage said he had "shaken up British politics". In the night's other by-election, Labour held on to Heywood and Middleton but UKIP slashed its majority to 617. Mr Farage told BBC Breakfast UKIP could hold the balance of power after next year's general election. He said UKIP's second place in Heywood and Middleton was "even more significant" than its win in Clacton, saying the party was now the main opposition to Labour in northern cities. "Something big is happening here.

People want change, they have had enough of career politicians in three parties." Mr Farage said he expected more Conservative MPs to join UKIP following the defection of Mr Carswell and Mark Reckless, who has triggered a by-election in Rochester and Strood, Kent. "I think it would be very surprising if more people did not come across", he said, saying he had also spoken to Labour MPs "frustrated that they are not able to change things in British politics". Conservative Party Chairman Grant Shapps told BBC Breakfast the result in Clacton was a "wake-up call" saying that while UKIP were a threat to all the Westminster parties, they "cost Conservatives seats", so put Labour leader Ed Miliband "one step closer to Downing Street". Media captionEd Miliband said the Tories lost in "their own backyard" in the Clacton by-election Prime Minister David Cameron said : "If you see a big UKIP vote you end up with Ed Miliband as prime minister, Ed Balls as chancellor, Labour in power." BBC political editor Nick Robinson said the Conservative strategy of saying a UKIP vote helped Labour was "the only way they think they can get those voters back".

The UKIP vote could still "slump back" at the general election, or it could "carry on breaking every prediction and really make a breakthrough", he added. 'Humility, modesty' Speaking in Heywood, where he congratulated winning candidate Liz McInnes, Mr Miliband said UKIP voters did not think political parties listened to them or that the country represented them. He said Labour had changed and realised it was "not prejudiced" to worry about immigration, but said he did not think UKIP could "represent the interests of working people". The next election would be a fight against "disillusionment and despair", he predicted. Speaking on a walkabout with Mr Farage in Clacton on Friday morning, Mr Carswell, who gained 21,113 votes - 60% of the total - said he did not want to be UKIP leader. and said his old party had "smeared" Mr Reckless since his defection. In his acceptance speech he told UKIP supporters there was "nothing that we cannot achieve". Addressing the people of his constituency, he said: "I resigned from parliament to face this election because I answer first, foremost and last to you.

You are my boss. I will not let you down. "To my new party I offer these thoughts: humility when we win, modesty when we are proved right. If we speak with passion, let it always be tempered by compassion." Image copyright AP Image caption Mr Carswell overturned a Conservative majority in Clacton Image copyright PA Image caption Liz McInnes retained Heywood and Middleton for Labour but with a reduced majority Image copyright Getty Images Image caption UKIP leader Nigel Farage said Mr Carswell was "a brave and honourable man" He also addressed the party's prospects on a wider front, saying "we must be a party for all Britain and all Britons: first and second generation as much as every other". "Our strength must lie in our breadth. If we stay true to that there is nothing that we cannot achieve. Nothing we cannot achieve in Essex and East Anglia, in England and the whole country beyond." Media captionLiz McInnes' acceptance speech Media captionConservative Party Chairman Grant Shapps: "UKIP's victory is a wake-up call" Mr Carswell condemned the other Westminster parties for operating "cosy cartel politics".

Michael Dugher, Labour's vice-chairman, said his party would continue to "expose UKIP for what they are". "We will take them on in our areas", he said. Mr Dugher said UKIP had inflicted a "humiliating defeat for David Cameron" in Clacton. But Labour MP and former Pensions Minister Frank Field MP said: "If last night's vote heralds the start of UKIP's serious assault into Labour's neglected core vote, all bets are off for safer, let alone marginal seats at the next election." Analysis by Chris Mason, BBC political correspondent Image copyright Getty Images If Clacton provided the headline, Heywood and Middleton provided the surprise: UKIP nearly won there too. Little wonder party leader Nigel Farage was on the champagne in the pub afterwards. The faces of Tory activists in Clacton said it all. Imagine how you'd feel if you had to listen to the victory speech of a former colleague who walked out on you and then gave you a walloping to boot.

Read more from Chris Mr Carswell is the first MP to be elected under their banner although it did have one MP for two years after 2008 after another Tory MP, Bob Spink, defected to them. Conservative candidate Giles Watling, one of the stars of the old BBC sitcom Bread, said: "I intend to stand here next May at the general election when this country will face a clear choice of who they want to be the leader - David Cameron or Ed Miliband." Labour 'in trouble' It had also looked at one point that UKIP could have been celebrating a double success with the result in the Greater Manchester constituency of Heywood and Middleton - held comfortably by Labour since its creation in 1983 - deemed close enough to warrant a "bundle check" of votes. But in the end, Labour's Liz McInnes got 11,633 votes - 41% - with UKIP's John Bickley gaining 11,016 - 39%.

Media captionUKIP leader Nigel Farage: "The whole of British politics has been shaken up" Media captionProf John Curtice says Douglas Carswell's Clacton win is the largest increase in vote by any party in any UK by-election Labour's newest MP, Ms McInnes, told the BBC: "I'm going to work damn hard in this constituency. People here will have an MP who is going to fight for their interests." But Mr Bickley said: "Labour are in big trouble. This should have been a safe seat. They have thrown everything at it and they have only just scraped home." 'Very different election' Elections expert Professor John Curtice of Strathclyde University said: "We have to accept that the battle in England for May 2015 is not going to be a battle between simply three parties; it's going to be a battle between at least four parties. Media captionA look back at previous election "first wins" "And bear in mind that also, according to some of the opinion polls, the Greens are running at 5% or 6% as well.

We are looking at a very different kind of electoral competition in England from anything we have previously experienced in post-war elections." The Heywood and Middleton contest was prompted by the death of long-serving Labour MP Jim Dobbin last month. His majority at the last general election was 5,971.

Clacton by-election: result in full Douglas Carswell (UKIP) 21,113 (59.75%) Giles Watling (Con) 8,709 (24.64%) Tim Young (Lab) 3,957 (11.20%) Chris Southall (Green) 688 (1.95%) Andy Graham (LD) 483 (1.37%) Bruce Sizer (Ind) 205 (0.58%) Howling Laud Hope (Loony) 127 (0.36%) Charlotte Rose (Ind) 56 (0.16%) Turnout was 51% Heywood and Middleton by-election: result in full Liz McInnes (Lab) 11,633 (40.86%) John Bickley (UKIP) 11,016 (38.69%) Iain Gartside (Con) 3,496 (12.28%) Anthony Smith (LD) 1,457 (5.12%) Abi Jackson (Green) 870 (3

.06%) Turnout was 36% Clacton byelection: Douglas Carswell wins Ukip's first parliamentary seat | Politics | The Guardian UK Independence party (Ukip) Clacton byelection: Douglas Carswell wins Ukip's first parliamentary seat Farage says his party can now reach into both Labour and Tory heartlands after electoral victory in Clacton Friday 10 October 2014 03.28 EDT First published on Thursday 9 October 2014 21.46 EDT Close This article is 2 years old Nigel Farage has delivered a mini-earthquake in British politics with the former Conservative MP Douglas Carswell capturing Ukip’s first parliamentary seat and the party squeezing Labour in its north-west heartland.

The Ukip leader declared early on Friday morning that he now leads the only truly national party after Carswell swept to victory in Clacton following a collapse in the Tory vote. Carswell won with 21,113 votes (59.66%) ahead of the Tory candidate Giles Watling on 8,709 votes, as the Conservative vote fell from the 53% that Carswell won as a Conservative in 2010 to 24.6%. The turnout was 51.2%. The Liberal Democrats lost their deposit for the tenth time in a byelection this parliament after Andy Graham came fifth in Clacton behind the Greens with 483 votes, securing just 1.1% of the overall share compared with the 12.9% his party won in 2010. Labour came third on 3,957 votes. Farage said his party could now reach into both Labour and Tory heartlands after Ukip squeezed Labour to come within 617 votes of capturing the formerly safe seat of Heywood and Middleton in Greater Manchester.

Liz McInnes, an NHS scientist and local councillor from Rossendale in Lancashire, won the Heywood and Middleton byelection for Labour with 11,633 votes. That was well down on the 18,499 votes the late Jim Dobbin won at the 2010 general election although the overall percentage of the Labour vote increased slightly from 40.1% to 40.9%. The Ukip candidate John Bickley achieved one of his party’s most successful byelection results when he came second on 11,016 votes, a dramatic improvement on the 1,215 won by Ukip when it came fifth in 2010. Bickley saw the Ukip percentage shoot up from 2.6% in 2010 to 38.7%. The turnout was 36.02%. As he arrived at the count on the other side of England in Clacton, Farage said: “We are the most national of all political parties. We are the only party that can get big vote shares in Tory heartlands and in Labour heartlands.

No other party crosses those boundaries – those old divides of left and right and the divides of class – and we cross all of those things.” Farage said the Westminster class would not be able to recover. “You’re out of touch guys,” he said when asked what message his party’s success sends to Westminster. “It is too late,” he said when asked what the other parties should do. “We have a career political class of college kids who have never had jobs in their lives with absolutely no connection to ordinary people and how they are struggling. We need new people. We need change, real change.” Ed Miliband faced immediate pressure after the result in Heywood and Middleton. John Mann, the Labour MP for Bassetlaw, tweeted: “If Ed Miliband does not broaden the Labour coalition to better include working class opinion then we cannot win a majority government.” Ukip’s victory in Clacton, which follows Carswell’s defection in August, marks a major breakthrough for Ukip after its victory in the European parliamentary elections in May. Carswell’s victory will make it difficult to exclude Ukip from the leaders’ television debates in next year’s general election.

Carswell used his victory speech to issue a warning to Ukip that it must have no truck with racism as he said it must reach to all parts of Britain. He said: “We are a party for all Britain and all Britons, first and second generation as much as every other. Our strength must lie in our breadth.” The new Ukip MP said that his party’s strong performance in Heywood and Middleton showed it was no longer the “Tory party in exile”. Carswell told Sky News: “The extraordinary result this evening is not here in Clacton. It is what happened in Middleton and Heywood – in a rock solid safe Labour seat we came within a hair’s breadth of winning. That says that we can win if we are good in Rochester. But it says we can take votes from the centre left as well as from the centre right. “The idea that we are the Tory party in exile – that myth died this evening. We are a different party that stands for all Britain and all Britons, disillusioned former Labour voters who have given up on politics altogether, every bit as much as for traditional Conservative voters.

This is something new, this is something different.” The Conservatives had said that Farage would struggle to maintain the momentum after Ukip beat Labour into second place in the European elections in May. But Farage’s success in persuading two Tory MPs to defect to Ukip, both of whom immediately triggered byelections, has created the circumstances for dramatic contests to rival the byelections contested by the SDP in the early 1980s. A writ has yet to be called for a byelection in Rochester and Strood after Mark Reckless followed Carswell’s lead to create the nearest parallel to the attempt by the SDP/Liberal Alliance to try and “break the mould” in British politics in the early 1980s. Eric Pickles, the communities secretary, signalled early on in the night that the Tories were expecting to lose Clacton, which Carswell won for the Tories in 2010 with a majority of 12,068 votes.

Pickles told Question Time on BBC1: “I live in optimistic hope that a Conservative will be returned tonight but I fear I will be disappointed.” The communities secretary aired one of the main lines of attack the Tories will deploy in the general election when he said that only his party could guarantee an in/out referendum on Britain’s EU membership. He told Question Time: “The honest truth is this: the only way in which the British people will get a choice about whether or not to stay in the EU is if they vote Conservative at the next election because we are the only party that is capable of delivering that. We have made that pledge very clear. “Come May the people of Clacton, as the rest of the country, will have a choice of whether they want to see Mr Miliband put through the door of No 10 or David Cameron walk through the door of No 10. Ukip is in the way of doing that.” Harriet Harman, the deputy leader of the Labour party, moved to reach out to people attracted to Ukip. She said: “I profoundly understand the concerns people have that make them feel despairing or angry but I profoundly disagree with the proposals that Ukip are putting forward.

“People see them [Ukip] as outsiders and therefore giving people a kick up the backside. But the reality is that the policies that are being put forward would make the problems that people have and the struggles they have in their lives actually worse rather than better. “As Ukip advances … people will look at those policies more seriously.” Carswell’s victory will revive memories for some of the byelections of the early 1980s when Shirley Williams and Roy Jenkins, two of the founding members of the SDP Gang of Four, won high profile byelections.

London mayor says it was wrong for party manifesto to have claimed it was possible to cut net migration to below 100,000 Published: 12 Oct 2014 Ukip’s first MP adds his party could take as many as 24 seats at general election and hints that Labour MP considering defecting Published: 12 Oct 2014 Letters: Digging in and adopting a parochial sensibility has causes, some of which Labour could address Published: 12 Oct 2014 Farage insists his party is ‘not a splinter’ of the Tories amid growing Conservative calls for deal before next year’s election Published: 11 Oct 2014 Carswell is Ukip's first elected MP - BT Carswell is Ukip's first elected MP Ukip has its first elected MP after Douglas Carswell won the Clacton by-election today. Print this story Ukip has its first elected MP after Douglas Carswell won the Clacton by-election today. Mr Carswell received 21,113 votes to secure the seat with a majority of 12,404, as he finished comfortably ahead of Conservative candidate Giles Watling.

The by-election in Clacton took place after Mr Carswell defected to Ukip from the Conservatives and resigned from his seat in August. Turnout was 51.2% with 35,386 ballot papers counted, a decrease from the 64.2% turnout at the 2010 general election. Tory Mr Watling received 8,709 votes to finish second while Labour's Tim Young finished third with 3,957 votes. Ukip defector Mark Reckless, who has also triggered a by-election in Rochester and Strood, attended the count in Clacton's Princes Theatre. Former Liberal Democrat MP Lembit Opik also made an appearance in support of independent candidate Charlotte Rose, who was campaigning for sexual freedom and finished in last place with 56 votes. Mr Carswell previously secured the Clacton seat in 2010 with a majority of 12,068 votes over Labour's Ivan Henderson, having first being elected to Parliament in 2005 in the Harwich seat. In his acceptance speech Mr Carswell explained his decision to stand down after defecting from the Tories.

"I resigned from Parliament to face this election because I answer first, foremost and last to you, you are my boss, I will not let you down," he said. "To my new party I offer these thoughts: humility when we win, modesty when we are proved right. If we speak with passion, let it always be tempered by compassion. We must be a party for all Britain and all Britons: first and second generation as much as every other. "Our strength must lie in our breadth. If we stay true to that there is nothing that we cannot achieve. "Nothing we cannot achieve in Essex and East Anglia, in England and the whole country beyond." Ukip's next target is Rochester and Strood, where Mr Carswell's fellow defector Mark Reckless is hoping to return to Parliament. Mr Carswell said: "In Rochester as in Clacton I believe voters will reject negative campaigns by old party machines." Mr Watling said he wanted to stand as the Tory candidate at next year's general election.

He said: "I intend to stand here next May at the general election when this country will face a clear choice of who they want to be the leader - David Cameron or Ed Miliband." Labour's Mr Young said: "I would also like to thank Mr Carswell, who of course none of this would have been possible. I wish him well. Having been born in Clacton and brought up here I truly care about Clacton and we will always continue to hold you to account Douglas, but I congratulate you on your victory." Howling Laud Hope, of the Official Monster Raving Looney Party, joked: "One little message for Mr Carswell, come seven months' time in May will you cross the floor and join the loonies?" Clacton byelection 2014 | Politics | The Guardian Clacton byelection 2014 The latest news and features on the Clacton byelection December 2014 Party general secretary to stand aside as a result of negative publicity caused by candidate Natasha Bolter’s claims Published: 23 Dec 2014 Miliband is approaching the point of no return.

He must now come out fighting Martin Kettle Martin Kettle: Labour needs to reconnect in southern marginals or raise its game in Scotland. Better still, do both Published: 4:42 PM Simon Hattenstone: The newly elected MP for Clacton – Ukip’s first – on why he became disillusioned with the Tories and going for McFlurrys with Nigel Farage Published: 1:00 PM Ukip is surging in the polls. Most pollsters have Farage’s party in the mid-teens, with one even showing the party on 25%. But how does this all translate into actual parliamentary seats? Published: 3:34 PM Analysis suggests five seats – including three held by Tories – are likely to fall to Ukip, but another 25 are vulnerable Published: 3:34 PM Latest survey puts Labour four points ahead of Tories, while Ukip builds on Clacton byelection success with 14% rating Published: 4:57 PM John Crace’s sketch: first day back for Nigel Farage’s cheeky little brother John Crace John Crace: The Ukip leader was watching from on high as the party’s first MP took his seat.

But it was more sibling rivalry than proud parent Published: 4:12 PM Chris Riddell on the repercussions of Nigel Farage's first parliamentary victory Published: 7:05 PM Nigel Farage is the Captain Mainwaring of our time Jonathan Freedland Jonathan Freedland: Ukip’s rise, like the return of Dad’s Army, suggests a nation still yearning for the days when it stood alone Published: 2:50 PM Editorial: Ukip has tapped the same anti-Westminster rage as the yes campaign achieved in Scotland.

Instead of pinching Farage’s policies, the main parties should take him on Published: 2:30 PM Andrew Sparrow’s rolling coverage of the reaction to Ukip winning Claction from the Conservatives in the byelection, and coming a close second to Labour in Heywood and Middleton Published: 11:17 AM How Labour can prevent core voters defecting to Ukip Diane Abbott Diane Abbott: Addressing traditional Labour voters’ real self-interest is the way forward rather than pandering to ‘Ukip-lite’ on race and migration Published: 10:05 AM Ukip has won its first elected seat in parliament with a big victory in the Clacton byelection by former Conservative MP Douglas Carswell, who took 60% of the vote in the Essex town Published: 11:46 PM 10th October 2014, 2:59 AM Douglas Carswell was the frontrunner in Clacton UKIP’s Douglas Carswell has become the party’s first elected MP, following the Clacton by-election.

The by-election in the Essex town was triggered last month by the defection of former Tory MP Mr Carswell , who voted against same-sex marriage last year, describing the law as “arrogant”. He wrote: “Although I believe in equal treatment for gay people and believe that all people should be able to live under the same laws, I am opposed to the government’s proposals. I think there is something a little bit arrogant about ministers supposing that it is for them to redefine communal rules that have existed for centuries.” In 2007, Mr Carswell also voted against protections for sexual orientation in the provision of goods and services, under the Equality Act. He won a seat today with 21,113 votes – well ahead of second place Tory candidate Giles Watling on 8,709 votes. Mr Carswell is the party’s first elected MP. In April 2008, former Castle Point MP Bob Spink defected from the Conservatives to UKIP but later reclassified himself as an independent. In 2010, he stood as an ‘Independent Save Our Green Belt’ candidate but lost to the Conservative’s Rebecca Harris.

Clacton by-election: 12 facts about Ukip's new MP Douglas Carswell | The Independent Clacton by-election: 12 facts about Ukip's new MP Douglas Carswell Oliver Wright on some things that those who voted for him may not have known Friday 10 October 2014 01:45 BST Click to follow Indy Politics Former Tory MP Douglas Carswell Getty Images Douglas Carswell caused a political earthquake after he defected from the Conservatives and joined Ukip. And today he won a by-election in his old seat of Clacton to became Ukip's first elected MP. But what do we really know about Mr Carswell and his views? Here are some interesting facts about the new Ukip MP that some of those who voted for him may not have known: 1. Mr Carswell’s voting record shows continued opposition to gay marriage and laws against discrimination based on sexual orientation. He has voted against the Government stance supporting gay rights reforms five times, including several readings of the Same Sex Marriage Bill and laws making it available to armed forces personnel working overseas.

In 2007, he also voted against changes to the Equality Act, which put LGBT discrimination on the same legal footing as offences based on race, gender or disability for the first time. Writing a letter in 2012 against gay marriage, Mr Carswell insisted he believed in “equal treatment for gay people” but opposed his own party’s proposals. “I think there is something a little bit arrogant about ministers supposing that it is for them to redefine communal rules that have existed for centuries,” he added. 2. He wants to scrap all MPs' expenses except those relating to running an office and travel from their constituency. But The Daily Telegraph revealed in 2009 that he claimed allowances to pay for furniture in his constituency home, including a £655 “Maximus” love seat in deep moss brushed cotton, with extra fabric protection from sofa.com. 3. Carswell would like to repeal the Firearms Act brought in to restrict gun ownership after the Dunblane tragedy. He claims in his book 'The Plan' that it has done nothing to reduce gun crime while criminalising pistol shooting. He would also like to repeal the War Crimes Act, the Dangerous Dogs Act and legislation that requires football stadiums not to have standing terraces.

4. Mr Carswell signed off a letter condemning Ukip as a “one policy party” less than a month before he defected. Giles Watling, the former Bread actor who ended up standing for the Tories in Clacton sent Mr Carswell a draft of a letter for approval which he was sending to the local paper. The letter said that Ukip's attacks on the Tories were “madness” and that people should not be “fooled into voting Ukip”. Mr Carswell replied in an email that the letter “read very well” and that he would be “delighted” if Mr Watling sent it to the local newspaper. Less than a month later Mr Carswell defected to Ukip. He later denied attacking Ukip and said: “I was decidedly cool towards the sentiment of the letter… my response was that of someone who clearly had doubts”. 5. Mr Carswell was not actually entitled to vote for himself in Thursday's election. His main home is in Fulham, London and his constituency base is 200 yards outside the boundaries of his Parliamentary seat. 6. The new MP has written that he would like to remove legal protections that prevent employees from being fired by companies without following legal disciplinary procedures.

He would also scrap rules giving part time workers the same rights to equal pensions and holiday as full time employees. Read more PROFILE: A PROLIFIC BLOGGER WHO MAKES HIS OWN JAM 7. When Mr Carswell was asked about accusations of sexism in Ukip, including a former MEP’s description of women as “sluts” and assertions that “no self-respecting small businessman…would ever employ a lady of child-bearing age”, he called the views “intolerable”. “That’s totally intolerable and not only is it totally intolerable we should say it’s totally intolerable,” he told the Telegraph following his defection to Ukip. He has also spoken in support for increased maternity and paternity leave, vowing to take on “out of date” attitudes in Ukip. In pictures: The rise of Ukip In pictures: The rise of Ukip 1/8 1993: Alan Sked forms Ukip History professor Alan Sked had been active in anti-EU politics for a while beore he founded Ukip in 1993. He resigned from the party after the 1997 election, concerned that it was attracting far-right members, and has been critical of Ukip since.

Picture: Reuters Reuters 2/8 2005: Kilroy defects Former TV presenter Robert Kilroy-Silk founded Veritas in 2005, after a failed bid to become leader, and took many of Ukip's elected members with him. But the party slowly lost its popularity and didn't put forward any candidates in the last election. Picture: REUTERS/Kieran Doherty REUTERS KD/RUS 3/8 2010: Farage becomes leader, again Farage had led Ukip from 2006 until 2009, when he stood down to fight against the Speaker, John Bercow, for his Buckingham seat. He failed to win the election and returned to lead the party in November 2010. Picture: REUTERS/Kieran Doherty REUTERS/Kieran Doherty 4/8 2010: Ukip fights for election Nigel Farage was injured in a plane crash on polling day in the 2010 general election, but his party increased its success in the votes. It fielded 572 candidates and took 3.1% of the vote, though failed to win any seats.

REUTERS/Darren Staples REUTERS/Darren Staples 5/8 2013: Eastleigh gains Ukip's candidate Diane James got the highest ever number of votes for any candidate from the party, but was beaten by the Liberal Democrats. The surge in support gave Ukip confidence ahead of local and European elections later in the year. Picture: Reuters 6/8 2013: Bloom kicked out Godfrey Bloom, who served as an Ukip MEP from 2004 to 2014, had the whip withdrawn in 2013 after sexist comments and an attack on a journalist. He sat as an independent MEP until 2014, when he ended his term in office. Picture: REUTERS/Luke MacGregor 7/8 2014: European election success Ukip got a higher proportion of the vote than any other party in 2014's European elections, adding 11 new MEPs and taking its total to 24.

REUTERS/Luke MacGregor 8/8 2014: Carswell defects Douglas Carswell defected from Ukip at the end of August, and was followed by Mark Reckless at the end of September, who resigned from the Tories amid rumours of many more defections to come. Picture: REUTERS/Toby Melville 8. Carswell's first memories were of Uganda under the rule of the brutal dictator Idi Amin. His father was one of a small number of practising surgeons in the country and the first to diagnose a case of Aids in Anglophone Africa. “If you grow up in a country where arbitrary rule leads to the total ruin of society, the suppression of free markets leads to the collapse of living standards, of course you're going to grow up a libertarian,” he has said. 9. Mr Carswell has said on a number of occasions that he believes all party candidates should be selected through open primaries. But Mr Carswell himself ousted Roger Lord, the Ukip candidate in his seat who had already been chosen to fight him at the next election. There was no open primary. Video: Carswell was heavily criticised by top Tory party figures 10.

He may now be signed up to Ukip but is slightly less opposed to immigration that some of his constituents might expect as he made clear in his speech joining the party. “On the subject of immigration, let me make it absolutely clear; I'm not against immigration,” he said. “We should welcome those that want to come here to contribute. We need those with skills and drive. There's hardly a hospital, GP surgery or supermarket in the country that could run without that skill and drive.” 11. He thinks the police should be placed under the control of locally elected Sheriffs - who would be able set local sentencing guidelines for criminals. 12. Mr Carswell also appears not to mind about changing his mind. In April he wrote: “In order to exit the EU, we need David Cameron to be prime minister in 2017 - the year when we get the in/out referendum, our chance to leave the EU.” He clearly no longer believes that.

Ukip may prop up minority Tory government in exchange for EU referendum - ITV News 12 October 2014 at 4:02pm Ukip may prop up minority Tory government in exchange for EU referendum Ukip leader Nigel Farage has said his party would prop up a minority Conservative government if it agreed to a "full, free and fair referendum" on Britain's EU membership. It follows a Survation poll for the Mail on Sunday which found that one in four Britons back Ukip. The eurosceptic party won a by-election in Clacton with a giant 12,404-vote lead. Nigel Farage has said his party would prop up a minority Conservative government if it agreed to a "full, free and fair referendum" on Britain's EU membership. The Ukip leader told BBC1's Sunday Politics: The price would be a full, free and fair referendum on our continued membership of the European Union, the opportunity to get our country back, and for that to happen quickly. – nigel farage, ukip leader It means the eurosceptic party would agree to a confidence and supply arrangement, where it backs or abstains on budget and legislative programme votes.

Labour's Chuka Umunna has called on Ukip to address "racists" in its ranks after allegedly receiving abusive tweets from supporters of the party. Chuka Umunna allegedly received racist texts from supporters of Ukip. Credit: Sky News/Murnaghan Asked about the messages on Sky News, the shadow business secretary said: "Of course there are racists in Ukip - that is unfortunate and that is something they need to address. "They say terrible things about women, they say terrible things about different parts of our society." Umunna said the party understood that immigration was a "concern" for many Brits - and a key campaign issue for Ukip - but insisted he would not say "I agree with Nigel" [Farage] on leaving the European Union and thus preventing freedom of movement into Britain. "Europe is our biggest trading partner. Europe provides jobs. Our links with Europe provide jobs in this country and [Ukip] want to walk off with their bat and do nothing," he said. Boris Johnson has made an appeal to "kippers" thinking of voting for Ukip - saying "it doesn't seem to me there's a lot between us".

Boris Johnson made an appeal to "kippers" on BBC's Andrew Marr Show. Credit: Andrew Marr Show/BBC The Mayor of London said Douglas Carswell, a Conservative defector who became Ukip's first MP appeared to be a "doppelganger" with whom he agreed on most subjects. He told BBC One's Andrew Marr Show: "What do you want? You want a low-tax economy - what Douglas stands for - you want global free trade, you want a libertarian approach on the economy [...] socially progressive? Go for the Conservatives." "We're the only party, by the way, that will deliver what the Ukip people want: a referendum on Europe." He said the Conservatives should campaign to leave Europe should reforms of Britain's relationship with the EU not take place as hoped by the party, and called for a "points-based" system of immigration. The UK Independence Party's first elected MP has compared the Conservative party to HMV music stores, describing it as "defunct". Douglas Carswell speaking to Andrew Marr. Credit: BBC/The Andrew Marr Show "It's a little bit like HMV music. Once ubiquitous when it came to buying music.

The way the Tory party is retailing politics is like the way HMV retailed music - it is a defunct retail model," Douglas Carswell told the BBC's Andrew Marr show. Carswell, who won the Clacton by-election with a huge majority last week, said he argued that "we needed to Spotify" the Tory Party, but found too much opposition to change. He also played own suggestions Ukip could gain 25 MPs at the next election, saying: "Let's keep a sense of perspective....I don't like bravado talk and Ia'm not going to use it." Carswell he was hopeful fellow Tory defector Mark Reckless would win the upcoming by-election in Rochester, saying a win would show that British politics is becoming "fundamentally different".

Question: Who became UKIP's first MP when he won the Clacton by-election in October 2014?
Answer: Douglas Carswell